[NEohioPAL]Oberlin Senior Named Watson Fellow

[Marci Janas]

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Media Contact Only:
Marci Janas, director of Conservatory Media Relations
440-775-8328 (office); 440-667-2724 (cell); marci.janas at oberlin.edu


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:


Oberlin Jazz Pianist and German Studies Major
Kevin McHugh Named Watson Fellow


OBERLIN, OHIO (May 3, 2006) =97Kevin McHugh, who will graduate from=20
Oberlin later this month with a bachelor of music degree in jazz=20
studies from the Conservatory of Music and a bachelor of arts degree in=20=

German studies from the College of Arts and Sciences, has been=20
recognized by the Thomas J. Watson Foundation as =93a graduate of =
unusual=20
promise.=94 The foundation has awarded him a $25,000 fellowship to =
pursue=20
a one-year independent research project outside the United States.
	The 23-year-old jazz pianist and composer from Seattle, =
Washington,=20
will research the effects of rapid urban growth and subsequent cultural=20=

homogenization on =93super-metropolises,=94 traveling to Brazil, Egypt,=20=

India, and Japan. His project is worthwhile, McHugh says, because as=20
the urban population of the world skyrockets in the next century,=20
developing local traditions =97 especially music =97 will assume much=20
greater importance.
	=93With a projected 2.5 billion more people living in the =
world=92s=20
largest cities over the next 20 years, addressing the concern of=20
cultural homogenization=97and specifically local music=97in megacities =
is=20
incredibly important. I plan to perform with, interview, and record=20
local jazz musicians in S=E3o Paulo, Mumbai, Cairo, and Tokyo, and=20
discover how their music has become an expression of their global=20
identity. I will try to understand the influence of local music on=20
jazz, and see if there really is a sound of the city.=94
	McHugh=92s talents were evident long before he'd been honored =
with a=20
Watson.
	Before graduating from high school in Seattle, he had received a=20=

number of honors, including three outstanding soloist awards at the=20
Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival and music studies and ensembles prizes at=20=

the Academy of Music Northwest (AMNW). He also was a Berklee World=20
Scholarship Tour Winner.
	He chose Oberlin, he says, because it offered the opportunity to=20=

pursue a bachelor of music degree in jazz. At the last minute he=20
decided to pursue a bachelor of arts degree in German studies as well.
	=93I fell in love with German language and culture in high =
school and=20
traveled in the country performing with different improv comedy groups,=20=

so I wanted to improve my language skills and also learn about=20
Germany=92s political and cultural history,=94 McHugh says.
	In 2004 he won a scholarship from the German government for =
study at=20
the Freie Universit=E4t Berlin and a grant from the Federation of=20
German-American Clubs to study and perform in Berlin as a German=20
exchange scholar. He recently composed music for the play Das Ohr des=20
Dionysus, which was accepted into Berlin=92s 100 Grad Theaterfest.
	At the Conservatory, McHugh says he discovered =93a jazz faculty =
that is=20
arguably a collection of the most talented performers alive today. The=20=

fact that students get a chance to perform with them, through combo and=20=

Oberlin Jazz Ensemble rehearsals and performances, is incredible. Add=20
to that the opportunity to play with students who you know are going to=20=

be the next great jazz musicians, and the mix is enormously=20
stimulating.=94
	McHugh=92s interest in world music was solidified when, in =
summer 2004,=20
trombonist Andy Hunter =9106 invited him to play a three-month,=20
six-night-a-week engagement with his quartet at Shanghai=92s House of=20
Blues and Jazz.
	=93Two weeks later I stepped off the plane and into the =
sweltering heat=20
and swarming maze of Shanghai, and my love of large cities and their=20
music converged. I became intoxicated by the writhing energy of this=20
megacity,=94 McHugh says.
	=93Playing jazz in Shanghai was simply expressing the energy we =
felt=20
there. We listened to the radio and talked with locals, finding out=20
what was popular. We began incorporating Chinese pop songs into our=20
sets. Just sitting down at the piano before the club opened brought on=20=

a wave of staff members who would crowd around me and demand that I=20
play their latest cell phone ring tones.=94
	Because of the lack of jazz education in China, McHugh suddenly =
found=20
himself with a handful of students who not only wanted to learn his=20
jazz tradition, but also to share their rich Chinese musical heritage=20
with him.
	=93In Shanghai, teaching became an exchange of ideas, where I =
would play=20
a few jazz songs, and my =91students=92 would teach me a few Chinese =
folk=20
songs. As our band absorbed the local music and was caught by=20
Shanghai=92s seething current, we tried to create a unique sound for the=20=

way we felt about living there,=94 he recalls.
	=93There is no way to describe the incredible feeling of a huge =
city and=20
the use of its energy to create music, rearranging the shout of a=20
watermelon seller or the collective sigh of evening buses into a new=20
song. I couldn=92t possibly canvass the personality of these great=20
cities, learn their tempo and strut, and find connections between their=20=

culture and music by staying at home and listening to a CD,=94 McHugh=20
says.
	Watson fellowships are =93long-term investments in people likely =
to lead=20
or innovate,=94 says Beverly Larson, the executive director of the =
Watson=20
Fellowship Program. Each year the foundation receives nearly 1,000=20
applications for its prestigious fellowships from students at 50=20
selective, private liberal arts college and universities that=20
participate in the fellowship program. This year, 176 seniors competed=20=

on the national level for 50 awards.
	Oberlin has had at least one Watson Fellow in its graduating =
class=20
since 1969, the year the foundation began granting fellowships.
	The Oberlin Conservatory of Music, founded in 1865 and situated =
within=20
the intellectual vitality of Oberlin College since 1867, is the oldest=20=

continuously operating conservatory in the United States. Renowned=20
internationally as a professional music school of the highest caliber=20
and pronounced a =93national treasure=94 by the Washington Post, =
Oberlin=92s=20
alumni have gone on to achieve illustrious careers in all aspects of=20
the serious music world. For more information about Oberlin, please=20
visit www.oberlin.edu.
# # #


Marci Janas
Director of Conservatory Media Relations
Oberlin Conservatory of Music
39 West College Street
Oberlin, OH  44074
www.oberlin.edu/con
(P) 440-775-8328
(F) 440-775-5457
marci.janas at oberlin.edu=

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<flushright><underline>Media Contact Only:

</underline>Marci Janas, director of Conservatory Media Relations

440-775-8328 (office); 440-667-2724 (cell);
=
<underline><color><param>0000,0000,FFFF</param>marci.janas at oberlin.edu</co=
lor></underline>



</flushright><underline>FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:=20


</underline><bold>

</bold><center><bold>Oberlin Jazz Pianist and German Studies Major=20

Kevin McHugh Named Watson Fellow


</bold><italic>

</italic></center>OBERLIN, OHIO (May 3, 2006) =97Kevin McHugh, who will
graduate from Oberlin later this month with a bachelor of music degree
in jazz studies from the Conservatory of Music and a bachelor of arts
degree in German studies from the College of Arts and Sciences, has
been recognized by the Thomas J. Watson Foundation as =93a graduate of
unusual promise.=94 The foundation has awarded him a $25,000 fellowship
to pursue a one-year independent research project outside the United
States.

	The 23-year-old jazz pianist and composer from Seattle, =
Washington,
will research the effects of rapid urban growth and subsequent
cultural homogenization on =93super-metropolises,=94 traveling to =
Brazil,
Egypt, India, and Japan. His project is worthwhile, McHugh says,
because as the urban population of the world skyrockets in the next
century, developing local traditions =97 especially music =97 will =
assume
much greater importance.

	=93With a projected 2.5 billion more people living in the =
world=92s
largest cities over the next 20 years, addressing the concern of
cultural homogenization=97and specifically local music=97in megacities =
is
incredibly important. I plan to perform with, interview, and record
local jazz musicians in S=E3o Paulo, Mumbai, Cairo, and Tokyo, and
discover how their music has become an expression of their global
identity. I will try to understand the influence of local music on
jazz, and see if there really is a sound of the city.=94

	McHugh=92s talents were evident long before he'd been honored =
with a
Watson.

	Before graduating from high school in Seattle, he had received a
number of honors, including three outstanding soloist awards at the
Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival and music studies and ensembles prizes at
the Academy of Music Northwest (AMNW). He also was a Berklee World
Scholarship Tour Winner.

	He chose Oberlin, he says, because it offered the opportunity to
pursue a bachelor of music degree in jazz. At the last minute he
decided to pursue a bachelor of arts degree in German studies as well.

	=93I fell in love with German language and culture in high =
school and
traveled in the country performing with different improv comedy
groups, so I wanted to improve my language skills and also learn about
Germany=92s political and cultural history,=94 McHugh says.

	In 2004 he won a scholarship from the German government for =
study at
the Freie Universit=E4t Berlin and a grant from the Federation of
German-American Clubs to study and perform in Berlin as a German
exchange scholar. He recently composed music for the play <italic>Das
Ohr des Dionysus</italic>, which was accepted into Berlin=92s 100 Grad
Theaterfest.

	At the Conservatory, McHugh says he discovered =93a jazz faculty =
that
is arguably a collection of the most talented performers alive today.
The fact that students get a chance to perform with them, through
combo and Oberlin Jazz Ensemble rehearsals and performances, is
incredible. Add to that the opportunity to play with students who you
know are going to be the next great jazz musicians, and the mix is
enormously stimulating.=94

	McHugh=92s interest in world music was solidified when, in =
summer 2004,
trombonist Andy Hunter =9106 invited him to play a three-month,
six-night-a-week engagement with his quartet at Shanghai=92s House of
Blues and Jazz.

	=93Two weeks later I stepped off the plane and into the =
sweltering heat
and swarming maze of Shanghai, and my love of large cities and their
music converged. I became intoxicated by the writhing
<italic>energy</italic> of this megacity,=94 McHugh says.

	=93Playing jazz in Shanghai was simply expressing the energy we =
felt
there. We listened to the radio and talked with locals, finding out
what was popular. We began incorporating Chinese pop songs into our
sets. Just sitting down at the piano before the club opened brought on
a wave of staff members who would crowd around me and demand that I
play their latest cell phone ring tones.=94

	Because of the lack of jazz education in China, McHugh suddenly =
found
himself with a handful of students who not only wanted to learn his
jazz tradition, but also to share their rich Chinese musical heritage
with him.

	=93In Shanghai, teaching became an exchange of ideas, where I =
would
play a few jazz songs, and my =91students=92 would teach me a few =
Chinese
folk songs. As our band absorbed the local music and was caught by
Shanghai=92s seething current, we tried to create a unique sound for the
way we felt about living there,=94 he recalls.

	=93There is no way to describe the incredible feeling of a huge =
city
and the use of its energy to create music, rearranging the shout of a
watermelon seller or the collective sigh of evening buses into a new
song. I couldn=92t possibly canvass the personality of these great
cities, learn their tempo and strut, and find connections between
their culture and music by staying at home and listening to a CD,=94
McHugh says.

	Watson fellowships are =93long-term investments in people likely =
to
lead or innovate,=94 says Beverly Larson, the executive director of the
Watson Fellowship Program. Each year the foundation receives nearly
1,000 applications for its prestigious fellowships from students at 50
selective, private liberal arts college and universities that
participate in the fellowship program. This year, 176 seniors competed
on the national level for 50 awards.

	Oberlin has had at least one Watson Fellow in its graduating =
class
since 1969, the year the foundation began granting fellowships.

	<bold>The Oberlin Conservatory of Music</bold>, founded in 1865 =
and
situated within the intellectual vitality of Oberlin College since
1867, is the oldest continuously operating conservatory in the United
States. Renowned internationally as a professional music school of the
highest caliber and pronounced a =93national treasure=94 by the
<italic>Washington Post,</italic> Oberlin=92s alumni have gone on to
achieve illustrious careers in all aspects of the serious music world.
For more information about Oberlin, please visit
=
<underline><color><param>0000,0000,FFFF</param>www.oberlin.edu</color></un=
derline>.

<center># # #


</center>

Marci Janas

Director of Conservatory Media Relations

Oberlin Conservatory of Music

39 West College Street

Oberlin, OH  44074

www.oberlin.edu/con

(P) 440-775-8328

(F) 440-775-5457

marci.janas at oberlin.edu=

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